Prodromol (false) labor....how long did it last?

[organicmom3]

I'm just wondering....what's the longest amount of time (weeks) that anyone has ever experienced this before actually going into REAL labor....I get contractions everyday....and it's more than BH...sometimes lasting for hours at a time (several times for over 8 hours or more)... I know now (thanks to this forum) that this does happen more than one would think...you never read about it happening daily for weeks in any books! But I'm curious to see how many out there have it daily for the whole last month or more? I'm due on Tuesday and I've been having this every day for over three weeks and on and off before that......driving me nuts!!!!!!

[TheGorge]

I don't know about your case, but I talked to my doctor about my issue with contractions I was having back a month and a half ago. They would be triggered by something like a walk in the park, and would last through the night and return the next evening. Felt scary, and I couldn't sleep very well.

The doctor told me, prepare for more frequent ones in the last month!

On my part, I tried to drink more water, walk less, and instead try swimming... That's what one of the doctors recommended.

Talking to the doctor & checking the cervex length helped I think, too, so maybe part of it was mental.

Hard to say. I still get contractions often, but they don't bother me as much.

[organicmom3]

In the beginning mine seemed triggered by simply the time of day...early evening and got worse in the tub or when lying down (yeah, I know...most people are told to take baths and lay down to make them ease up!) but now it doesn't matter...walking definitley makes it worse but they can come on at any time of day regardless of activity.....I wish there was a trigger so I could at least ease them, but there is not....Mine defintely bother me...especially the ones I need to actually breathe through...though they are not all like that.

[TheGorge]

So have you asked your doctor/whoever you trust about this? I really didn't want to, but during my regular appointment I asked, and after they confirmed everything was fine (and not super-early labor as I feared), contractions haven't bothered me. But like I said, my doctor did tell me that the last month can be all contractions all the time.

And yes, for me also laying down didn't help at all, and it was worse in the evening. The only thing that would make them go away was somehow falling asleep. In the morning they'd be gone, but would happen during the day occasionally, increasing towards the evening. I think it helped to drink a glass of water or two, but I don't have enough data to say for sure

OH! And, the doctor gave me a prescription for the symptoms - let's see, Nifedipine 20 mg tablets. I never filled it, though, it's still on my fridge.

[Annie Mac]

I can't completely answer your question, since I haven't had my baby yet, but my prodromal/false labour started at about 28 weeks. I'm now 38w, 5 days, and while I've noticed some changes in the intensity and quality of the contractions, they have not yet "stuck," as it were. I asked my doctor about it. She said something about "irritable uterus," which came down to the fact that some women just experience this, who knows why, and until a certain time (her cut off was 34 wks), she just advises lower activity level to avoid going into real labour too early.

In my case, they are always worse at night. A hot bath usually eases them off, as does lying down. Walking and standing increases them, so does bouncing on the physio ball. I've tried to walk and/or bounce myself into real labour as well...but no luck with that. She's coming when she's coming.

[MaerynPearl]

I was in prodromal for a month before having DD... it started at 35 weeks... she was born at 39.

I was in and out of the hospital a lot during that time because it would get really bad sometimes and seemed like it was real labor... but they would always send me home.

It was so bad that the night I actually did go into labor my XH told me, on the way into the hospital, that he was going to be pissed if this weren't the real thing and would not bring me again.

[CherryBomb]

With my third I had it off and on for over 2 days before going into real labor. Each time would last at least 8 hours. And the contractions were very regular, every 5-7 minutes.

[sanguine_speed]

My understanding of prodromal labor is different from what is being described here. Contractions that come several times a day, or for a few hours at a time, then stop are not what I think of as prodromal labor.

I had 3 days or so of prodromal labor and it was just like active labor (the after-early-labor-but-not-near-transition) kind...can't talk, must breathe through, try really hard to sleep but it hurts...
the only difference between prodromal labor and active labor is that prodromal contractions do not increase in frequency and are not exactly regular.

There was no stop between prodromal labor and true labor--the contractions simply became regular, more frequent and longer until the baby came out.

Right now I'm almost 36 weeks and having hours where I'm having 10+ contractions and hour that are distracting and uncomfortable, but they are not as painful as true labor contractions, which is also what prodromal labor felt like.

Though boy are these BH getting annoying!

[organicmom3]

I do have to breathe through them most of the time. And they do wake me up at night over the last week or so, several times a night and most times I can't get back to sleep for awhile. They get somewhat regular for several hours and then taper off.....having them now...about 11-12 minutes apart...they still make me nervous since I'm afraid the real thing will start out this way and I won't know the difference....It's hard to focus while happening and is so disruptive...I pray though it doesn't turn into anything more for about 26 hours when the midwife returns to town!!!!! PLEASE stay in there baby!

[organicmom3]

Only about 11 hours until the midwife is back in town and this won't have to make me quite so nervous....as long as nothing sudden happens with hubby at work! I pray it happens soon after tonight while he happens to have some time off other than a shift on Wed.......I actually slept well last night...no contractions woke me up...they seem very mild this morning so I'm feeling peaceful....

[organicmom3]

YAY...she's back in town and my 40 week appt is with her tomorrow!

The prodromol labor is happening less often over the past two days...not sure if that is a good sign or bad at this point? Yesterday afternoon and last night they were no more frequent than 8-12 minutes apart for awhile but seemed to be getting more intense, more required me stopping to breathe, the kids could tell I was in pain, etc., but then of course stopped again.....